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ABSTRACT :
OBJECTIVE. The objective of our study was to use MDCT to study brain treatment and removal (excerebration) as part of mummification of royal Egyptian mummies dated to the 18th to early 20th Dynasties and to correlate the imaging findings with the archaeologic literature.
MATERIALS AND METHODS. As part of an MDCT study of the Royal Ancie...
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... part of a large MDCT study of the Royal Ancient Egyptian Mummies Project in Egypt [1,2], we decided in this study to focus on the CT images of the heads of 12 royal Egyptian mum- mies (circa 1493-1156 bc) dated to the 18th to ear- ly 20th Dynasties for evidences of brain treatment as part of mummification. Table 1 includes the identity and social status of the mummies in this study listed in chrono- logic order. ...
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Citations
... The ancient Egyptians conducted the first recorded transnasal procedures during mummification, where long instruments were used to perform excerebration (i.e., the removal of the brain and its surrounding structures) through the nose [8] (Figure 1). The concept behind endoscopy originated with Phillip Bozzini, who invented the lichtleiter ("light conductor") in 1805 [9]. ...
... It provides a two-dimensional 5 (2D) monocular view, requires two co-surgeons, and has certain anatomic constraints- 6 offering the best outcomes for smaller, midline pathologies-compared to microscopic 7 surgery. Complications in ESBS include cerebrospinal fluid rhinorrhea (8.9% incidence), 8 vascular injury and endocrine dysfunction (2.0%), central nervous system infection (1.7%), 9 and death (0.4%) [7]. ESBS represents an additional approach for treating skull base pa-0 thologies and requires judicious use by the skull base surgeon to offer patients the best 1 individualized treatment plan. 2 In this contemporary narrative review, we provide a comprehensive description of 3 the current state of visualization techniques in ESBS. ...
... We 6 discuss the history and development of ESBS, current visualization techniques, and future 7 innovations. 8 9 The ancient Egyptians conducted the first recorded transnasal procedures during 0 mummification, where long instruments were used to perform excerebration (i.e., the re-1 moval of the brain and its surrounding structures) through the nose [8] (Figure 1). The 2 concept behind endoscopy originated with Phillip Bozzini, who invented the lichtleiter 3 ("light conductor") in 1805 [9]. ...
Skull base surgery has undergone significant progress following key technological developments. From early candle-lit devices to the modern endoscope, refinements in visualization techniques have made endoscopic skull base surgery (ESBS) a standard practice for treating a variety of conditions. The endoscope has also been integrated with other technologies to enhance visualization, including fluorescence agents, intraoperative neuronavigation with augmented reality, and the exoscope. Endoscopic approaches have allowed neurosurgeons to reevaluate skull base neuroanatomy from new perspectives. These advances now serve as the foundation for future developments in ESBS. In this narrative review, we discuss the history and development of ESBS, current visualization techniques, and future innovations.
... Other royal mummies dated around the time of Amenhotep I (late 17th Dynasty to early 18th Dynasty) have not been excerebrated (12). These include Seqenenre Taa II, Meritamun, Thutmose II, Thutmose III, and Hatshepsut (19)(20)(21). Excerebration became popular later in the 18th Dynasty and the peak of the procedure is suggested to be in the Ptolemaic Period (18). ...
The mummy of King Amenhotep I (18th Dynasty c.1525–1504 BC) was reburied by the 21st Dynasty priests at Deir el-Bahari Royal Cache. In 1881 the mummy was found fully wrapped and was one of few royal mummies that have not been unwrapped in modern times. We hypothesized that non-invasive digital unwrapping using CT would provide insights on the physical appearance, health, cause of death, and mummification style of the mummy of King Amenhotep I. We examined the mummy with CT and generated two- and three-dimensional images for the head mask, bandages, and the virtually unwrapped mummy. CT enabled the visualization of the face of Amenhotep I who died around the age of 35 years. The teeth had minimal attrition. There was no CT evidence of pathological changes or cause of death. The body has been eviscerated via a vertical left flank incision. The heart is seen in the left hemithorax with an overlying amulet. The brain has not been removed. The mummy has 30 amulets/jewelry pieces including a beaded metallic (likely gold) girdle. The mummy suffered from multiple postmortem injuries likely inflicted by tomb robbers that have been likely treated by 21st Dynasty embalmers. These included fixing the detached head and neck to the body with a resin-treated linen band; covering a defect in the anterior abdominal wall with a band and placing two amulets beneath; placement of the detached left upper limb beside the body and wrapping it to the body. The transversely oriented right forearm is individually wrapped, likely representing the original 18th Dynasty mummification and considered the first known New Kingdom mummy with crossed arms at the chest. The head mask is made of cartonnage and has inlaid stone eyes. The digital unwrapping of the mummy of Amenhotep I using CT sets a unique opportunity to reveal the physical features of the King non-invasively, understand the mummification style early in the 18th Dynasty, and the reburial intervention style by 21st Dynasty embalmers. This study may make us gain confidence in the goodwill of the reburial project of the Royal mummies by the 21st dynasty priests.
... Ramses II ruled from 1279 -1213 and Merneptah ruled from 1213 -1203. Merneptah is the son of Ramses II and his successor [16][17][18][19]. ...
Radiology can help in rewriting human history and verifying historical narratives. By using medical imaging scans like CT, the mummies of pharaohs can be scanned to find the cause of death using the Virtual Autopsy technique. The issue is that some of history is connected with the world's religions. For example, the pharaoh who chased Moses and the Hebrews out of Egypt is mentioned in different narratives in the Quran and the bible. Which book has the true story indicates that it is the book of the true religion. Therefore, Radiology could find which religion is true and present a piece of physical evidence of which religion is true.
... Generally, excerebration was achieved by breaking through the ethmoid, inserting a tool to liquefy the brain, and then using a hooked tool to remove it. Certainly, though excerebration was commonly practiced (Herodotus and Godley 1922;Leek 1969;Smith and Dawson 1924), not all Egyptian mummies are excerebrated (Nelson and Wade 2015;Saleem and Hawass 2013;Wade et al. 2011), including Heresenes. ...
... In the 11 cases (excluding Heresenes) where a dotted pattern similar to hers was observed, its presence was generally ignored in prior publications. The dotted pattern was only mentioned in passing (Saleem and Hawass 2013), with the only interpretation for its presence being that it might be the result of mummification. However, no explanation as to what precisely in the embalming process might have been responsible for these is provided. ...
Heresenes is a mummified 25th Dynasty (ca. 746–653 B.C.) Egyptian woman from Luxor, Egypt. Nondestructive evaluation through computerized tomography (CT) showed a failed attempt at excerebration, leaving Heresenes’s meninges and brain in situ. The brain structure shows numerous millimetric dense calcific nodules, a CT brain pattern dubbed “starry night,” which is consistent with a diagnosis of neurocysticercosis in a nodular calcified stage. A similar speckled pattern in the upper spinal cord and in the heart supports the identification of a disseminated stage of this parasitic disease. If this were the case, then this would be the oldest documented case of this disease known in ancient Egypt, and the first nondestructive radiological diagnosis of it in a completely wrapped Egyptian mummy.Heresenes est une femme Égyptienne momifiée de la 25e dynastie (c. 746 aC–653 aC). L'évaluation non destructive par tomodensitométrie (TDM) a montré l'échec de la tentative d'excérébration, laissant les méninges et le cerveau d'Heresenes in situ. La structure cérébrale présente de nombreux nodules calciques denses millimétriques, une apparence en TDM surnommé «nuit étoilée», ce qui est cohérent avec un diagnostic de neurocysticercose dans un stade nodulaire calcifié. Un motif similaire dans la moelle épinière supérieure et dans le coeur soutien l´identification dun processus disséminé de cette maladie parasitaire. Si tel était le cas, ce serait le plus ancien cas documenté de cette maladie connue dans l'Égypte ancienne, et le premier diagnostic radiologique non destructif dans une momie égyptienne complètement enveloppée.
... Maspero and Smith considered the facial expression and the posture of "Unknown-Woman-A" as being unusual for the funerary customary and that she might have died in agony [2,4,5]. Computed tomography (CT) proved to be a powerful non-invasive tool in investigating mummies [6]. ...
... Therefore, the embalmers did not attempt to excerebrate (remove the brain) of "Unknown-Woman-A." Similarly, previous Xray and CT studies confirmed that royals dated to late 17th Dynasty to early 18th Dynasty have not been excerebrated, such as Seqenenre Taa II, Thutmose II, and Thutmose III [6,12]. The mummy's brain shrinks towards the most dependent position of the skull. ...
... The mummy's brain shrinks towards the most dependent position of the skull. We usually see in CT images the shrunken brain occupying the back of the skulls of mummies lying in the usual straight supine position [1,6]. In case of mummy of "Unknown-Woman-A" with her tilted head to the right, the desiccated brain is also shifted towards the right side of the cranial cavity (Fig. 3b). ...
Background
The Royal Cache at Deir el Bahari in Luxor, Egypt, contained the mummy of a princess named Meritamun of uncertain identity, who was consequently designated “Unknown-Woman-A.” The mummy has a widely opened mouth as if screaming, with the unusual posture of her head tilted to the right and partially flexed legs cross at the ankles. We postulated that computed tomography (CT) would help to provide insights on life and death of “Unknown-Woman-A.”
Results
CT findings indicate that “Unknown-Woman-A” died in her fifties (sixth decade of life) and suffered from advanced diffuse atherosclerosis. “Unknown-Woman-A” was well mummified and eviscerated, and her body cavity was filled with resin. The desiccated brain had shifted to the right inside her skull. We presume that “Unknown-Woman-A” died of a sudden and massive myocardial infarction. Death spasm induced her unusual posture, and the contracted body was apparently mummified before relaxing her postmortem position.
Conclusions
This CT study has provided useful information about the mummy designated “Unknown-Woman-A” including her mummification style, underlying advanced cardiovascular atherosclerosis disease, and her possible death circumstances.
... Indeed, multiple studies report the preservation of black, resinous or shiny brain tissue in the archaeological record (Table 1), and the "remnant liquid or paste" found in modern crania from forensic contexts (Hayman and Oxenham 2017; Table 3) echoes the description of resinous-like, organic material reported pooled in the crania of many ancient mummified corpses (e.g. Hawass and Saleem 2011;Proefke et al. 1992;Rühli, Chhem, and Böni 2004;Lynnerup 2010;Wade et al. 2010;Saleem and Hawass 2013). ...
Brain tissue is ubiquitous in the archaeological record. Multiple, independent studies report the finding of black, resinous or shiny brain tissue, and Petrone et al. [2020 "Heat-induced Brain Vitrification from the Vesuvius Eruption in C.E. 79." N Engl J Med. 382: 383-384; doi:10.1056/ NEJMc1909867] raise the intriguing prospect of a role for vitrification in the preservation of ancient biomolecules. However, Petrone et al. (2020) have not made their raw data available, and no detailed laboratory or analytical methodology is offered. Issues of contamination and misinterpretation hampered a decade of research in biomolecular archaeology, such that addressing these sources of bias and facilitating validation of specious findings has become both routine and of paramount importance in the discipline. We argue that the evidence they present does not support their conclusion of heat-induced vitrification of human brain tissue, and that future studies should share palaeoproteomic data in an open access repository to facilitate comparative analysis of the recovery of ancient proteins and patterns of their degradation.
... Radiology is the only way to investigate human remains that still preserve mummified tissues [31,39]. If we talk about Egyptian embalming, radiological investigation represents the most efficient way to analyse the find while maintaining its integrity [40,41]. Radiological examinations allow us to analyse the finds without damage them and explore bandages, bones and other materials used for embalming [42,43]. ...
Paleoradiological investigations of three mummified remains housed in the archaeological museum of Erba allowed us to investigate the origin, biological profile, embalming techniques and pathological conditions of finds unknown until now. These mummified remains, belonging to the private collection of the Majnoni family, were donated to the museum without any information about their origin. We are well aware of the past issue on the commercialization of mummified remains and of the low possibility for anthropologists to have access to ancient mummies. For this reason our intent is to stimulate curators of small collections to contact team of anthropologists, radiologists and paleopathologists to grant the study of finds housed in museums with the aim of obtaining more information about the anthropological cultural heritage.
... This did not extend into the cervical canal. The resinous material had a layered appearance, with the dense uppermost layer measuring 160 HU in average, the intermediate layer measuring 60 HU in average, and with high-density (up to 300 HU) debris at the bottom [35,36]. Several voids were apparent inside the resin, mostly on the left side, with the largest measuring up to 6 × 2 cm in the axial plane and 11 cm in the craniocaudal plane; these could possibly be caused by the remnants of the dural membranes. ...
Two ancient Egyptian child mummies at the University of Tartu Art Museum (Estonia) were, according to museum records, brought to Estonia by the young Baltic-German scholar Otto Friedrich von Richter, who had travelled in Egypt during the early 19th century. Although some studies of the mummies were conducted, a thorough investigation has never been made. Thus, an interdisciplinary team of experts studied the remains using the most recent analytical methods in order to provide an exhaustive analysis of the remains. The bodies were submitted for osteological and archaeothanatological study, radiological investigation, AMS radiocarbon dating, chemical and textile analyses, 3D modelling, entomological as well as aDNA investigation. Here we synthesize the results of one of the most extensive multidisciplinary analyses of ancient Egyptian child mummies, adding significantly to our knowledge of such examples of ancient funerary practices.
... The practice of excerebration steadily declined through the Ptolemaic and the Roman Periods. 3,4 The CT scan revealed an asymmetry of the maxillary sinuses, with the right one being much smaller. There were no signs of trauma in the area which could explain the concave morphology of the anterior maxillary sinus wall. ...
Objectives
In the context of a joint Mummy Research Project of the National Archaeological Museum, the Hellenic Institute of Egyptology and the Athens Medical Centre, an Egyptian mummy of the mid-Ptolemaic Period was transferred to our hospital and was thoroughly investigated with Computed Tomography.
Methods
The mummy was carefully removed from its coffin and scanned in a 64-detector row computed tomographic scanner. Multiplanar and anthropometric measurements were obtained using advanced software.
Results
The mummy appeared to be well-preserved and belonged to a young male adult. Among the findings, the most interesting and uncommon one was the asymmetry of the maxillary sinuses and the orbits. There were no signs of trauma.
Conclusions
Computed Tomography revealed in a non-destructive way a rare, based on the published data, facial deformity in an Egyptian mummy attributed to chronic maxillary atelectasis.
... software (available at website http://www.cti.gov. br/invesalius/) was used for post processing and reconstruction and for producing 2D and 3D CT images (Saleem and Hawass, 2013), that can be produced with varying windows width parameters and volume-rendering techniques (Hughes, 2011). The 2D and 3D reconstructed images provide information about the internal residues inside the casting. ...
... These chaplets are very important tools to adjust the place of the core inside the casting mold and thus adjust the thickness of the final hollow casting (Gostner et al., 2013). It can also help to estimate the type of core material by attenuation values measurements in Hounsfield units (HUs) and their standard deviation (SD) (Saleem and Hawass, 2013;Gostner et al., 2013). ...
